— THR reported Monday that Forest Whitaker has been tapped to star in the potential “Criminal Minds” spin-off.
Whitaker will debut on a spring episode, potentially the backdoor pilot, as Cooper, the leader of a new profiling team that works outside of the FBI’s reigns. The mysterious profiler was once a star of his craft but has been off the radar for nearly a decade.
With “Minds” consistently out-delivering all of the “CSI” series this year among adults 18-49, the show has joined “NCIS” as the standout of CBS’ procedural roster.
— As expected, the anticipated Starz debut of original series “Spartacus” set a ratings record for the premium network. The premiere averaged 553,000 viewers in first-run on Starz and then an additional 460,000 on Encore. Despite being readily available online prior to the premiere date, the episode is expected to clear television viewership of two million once DVR viewings and additional encore telecasts are tabulated.